Cadiz vs Villarreal

Estadio Nuevo Mirandilla is the venue as Cadiz and Villarreal go head-to-head in an intriguing La Liga encounter.

Cadiz’s uphill battle to avoid relegation took a hit last time out as a 2-1 defeat away to Atletico Madrid spelt the end for their four-match unbeaten La Liga run (W1, D3). Despite lamenting the league’s second-lowest win ratio of 14%, ‘El Submarino Amarillo’ could still secure salvation, with 17th-placed Mallorca only two points away. That’s mainly due to Cadiz’s propensity for drawing their league matches, with no other La Liga side playing out more stalemates than Sergio Gonzalez’s men (12) this season. But drawing may prove insufficient in this keenly-contested relegation battle, as the Andalusians seek only their second top-flight home victory this season (D8, L5) after dispatching Rayo Vallecano 2-0 last time out. Having won once in their previous six competitive H2Hs (D2, L3), Cadiz could miss out on their first back-to-back La Liga home triumphs since April 2021.

Brimming with confidence following an extravagant 3-0 victory at Juventus in midweek Champions League action, Villarreal will continue their top-four hunt in high spirits. A run of three wins from their last four La Liga matches (L1) has kept Unai Emery’s men within a six-point distance of fourth-placed Barcelona. The visitors have enjoyed a noticeable improvement on the road, racking up three triumphs across their last five away league games (L2), having won none of their previous nine travels in the competition beforehand (D5, L4). Villarreal have yet to lose to Cadiz in La Liga, but they’ve drawn four of their five such match-ups (W1). Against this backdrop, none of their last six La Liga away fixtures have ended level (W3, L3).